Kings say they will not trade DeMarcus Cousins

Despite the explosive situation between DeMarcus Cousins and head coach Paul Westphal, Kings ownership says it will not trade the temperamental but talented young power forward, ownership told the Sacramento Bee.

"We leave that stuff (the benching) to the basketball people," Kings co-owner Joe Maloof said before tipoff, "but we're not trading him."

The Kings not trading Cousins is the proper path. There's absolutely no way to get adequate value after releasing a statement of the nature of Westphal's. They have a player they don't feel they can control, and with Cousins' talent, they can't simply dump him off, especially with the struggles of the team thus far this season.

As for Westphal, he spoke to reporters prior to the Kings' game against the Hornets. Kings blog Cowbell Kingdom has video, and the comments are pretty interesting.

Something that stands out here, is this quote from Westphal (transcribed by Cowbell Kingdom):

“Well, it’s interesting that he told me before he told his agent, but he told me twice. So it’s silly to have the agent deny it just because he didn’t get a call before DeMarcus talked to me that’s the easiest one of all to answer.”

Westphal is explicitly claiming that the trade request was legitimate and that Cousins simply hasn't informed his agent, rather than his agent's interpretation, which is that Cousins was saying, in effect, "If that's the situation, then trade me" which is different from a trade demand. We're talking semantics here, but they're important on all sides.

It's also notable that Westphal says that to solve the situation, Cousins needs to do some soul searching. There's explicitly no claim of responsbility for the situation on Westphal's part. Which, if the situation is as bad as Westphal claims it is, isn't necessarily a fault. But it sets the table for how this situation is developing, which is that the coach feels this is all on the back of Cousins and not a two-way communication issue.

Tom Ziller at SBNation.com notes that the fact that the Kings did not suspend Cousins, instead just "sending him home," speaks to how the organization is being run. A suspension escalates the situation as it restricts his pay and can be appealed by the NBPA.

After this many incidents, however, at some point the Kings are going to have to face the situation head-on. Either Cousins is a part of the team's long-term future, or Westphal is. Because its hard to see either Cousins or Westphal changing their path at this point. It's not resolving itself, and even if Cousins is lacking in maturity, painting him into a corner this way isn't going to do anything to foster an environment of growth. Cousins may be too much of a problem to keep, but he's too talented to let go.

The Kings, for the moment, are stuck.

Here's reaction to the situation from Kings players after the game, courtesy of Cowbell Kingdom. There's a wide range of comments here, with the Kings players showing the kind of professionalism that Cousins needs to learn, even if Westphal is handling the situation badly (which is certainly up for interpretation). Yahoo Sports reports that Kings players have been irritated with Cousins' behavior for some time, with one source calling him "a bully."

Kings say they will not trade DeMarcus Cousins

The sad reality is that the Kings will get a new coach. A talent like Cousins comes once every decade if then. Coaches are relatively plentiful even if they are recycled again and again. Send for Larry Brown. Offer Jerry Sloan whatever it takes. The Kings underperform yearly. The player cannot be traded for equity. He has made himself almost untradeable.

The me attitude we see so often from Freshmen college basketball players leads to this example of a boy trying to portray a man (or not trying if you prefer.) It is about me, the player and not about the team. The we. Now most players don't have this disease. But most are not top-ten recruits and top-ten draft picks. Even there we find maturity and proper attitude. But not always. How does the league deal with this? They generally trade the malcontents a couple of times in their first four years and then low-ball them with offers for the fifth year if at all. For Sacramento, whose fans are among the most savvy in the league, it must be pure torture to see this go on. First the team drafts babies for players, then tries to move the team to Anaheim. Is there never any peace there?

Since: Oct 16, 2011

Posted on: January 2, 2012 8:29 pm

Kings say they will not trade DeMarcus Cousins

Cousins is a butt head. But I often wonder why coaches just keep getting recycled, I mean Westphal has a job and Jerry Sloan doesn't?

Since: Sep 5, 2011

Posted on: January 2, 2012 5:55 pm

Kings say they will not trade DeMarcus Cousins

im not there in that locker room,dont know whats going on there....but 2me things are handled 2much in the media and not in the locker room...and it rubs me the wrong way how loosely we use the term "great".....cousins is not a great player.....magic,bird,mj,dr.j,willis reed,clyde frazier,the big o,they were great players....he is not even good yet,yet a teamate refers 2him as "great"...really?

Since: May 24, 2008

Posted on: January 2, 2012 5:39 pm

Kings say they will not trade DeMarcus Cousins

Should we be surprised? Many players in the NBA think they are entitled to the world despite having done very little to gain respect. That's just one reason I am not watching any games this year. If you don't like the team you signed a contract with, then quit and go home you whiny little b*tch.

Since: Aug 23, 2010

Posted on: January 2, 2012 2:57 pm

Kings say they will not trade DeMarcus Cousins

Cousins is a young player that is used to being the guy in college. But as a young player in the NBA you are not going to get the same calls a veterans and you have to act accordingly. Not lose your cool and stomp around and question every call the ref makes on you. Once teams and refs see that you are a hot head they are going to get you riled up. You're fouling out of games and constantly in foul trouble and that doesn't help the team. Maybe that is why the Kings went out and got somemore forwards that know how to stay out of foul trouble. Cousins has been a problem since he has been here and is sure to wear out his welcome if he doesn't get his act together. He is not that much of a talent to get Westphal fired.

Since: Feb 19, 2007

Posted on: January 2, 2012 2:48 pm

Kings say they will not trade DeMarcus Cousins

DeMarcus Cousins is a pain in the ass, always has been, always will be...and he's not even that good.

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